discourses mention Abraham, Moses, and the Prophets as witnesses to himself (5:45–47). Some Greek manuscripts omit the phrase before me to avoid this confusion (Metzger 1994, 195). Thieves and robbers, here, are those who have not entered through the gate (v 1) and to whom the sheep have not listened (v 8). They are the contemporary Jewish leaders who have not witnessed to Jesus, or those who reject him, like the Pharisees in the preceding account (9:39–41). As John’s narrative indicates, perhaps